Newbie Questions for Potential RaceDeck Install

[Jstepy]

Hello All,

I want to thank CRSPenFab for pointing me over to these forums over from the Teslamotorsclub forums. We have a fairly large garage in Eastern Idaho and was about to pull the trigger on epoxy flooring but I wasn’t excited about the puddles of melted snow that would still be present in the winter. I started to research tiles and was leaning towards the 18x18 swisstracks until CRSPenFab pointed me to RaceDeck Free Flow. I was also excited to see the Free Flow XLC product that is 18 x18 x 3/4 like swisstracks but RaceDeck looks so much better. I already PM’d Mr. Moller of RaceDeck but maybe would get some answers quicker from posting here.

1) How do I address my bump out center garage. I know ObsessedGarage.com sells a product that attaches tiles together (swisstracks) when you potentially have to cut the pegs or loops off of a tile. Please see my garage floor plan attached. I have watched many install videos but can’t figure out a way to avoid having to cut tiles like this on the bump out that is approx. 2’ (See attached floor plan)

2) Is XLC overkill for a home garage, should I stick with standard FreeFlow and save a decent chunk of money?

3) I have two large gun safes, 900-1100 pounds each, do I bother moving them or just tile up to them? I am worried about damaging the tile moving them back into place if I was to move them out to tile the entire floor.

4) I also got a sample of TruLock HD tiles from Utah and they look pretty good. Has anyone ever compared the two side by side?

Thank you for your help.

 

[RaceDeck1]

YOU GOT MAIL

 

[kngelv]

I recently did a RaceDeck FreeFlow install in my garage. The blue cabinet is a Strong Hold that weighs 762 pounds empty. It has a 1/2 dozen vises and some heavy tooling on one side while the other is filled with power tools and overflow hand tools. I would estimate it weighs about 1500 pounds as it sits. The welding bench is 914 pounds. I ran the tile till I was within three feet of these. I put RaceDeck edge pieces on the side of the tiles and used a pallet jack to lift and pull them toward me away from the wall. I then finished the tile along the wall and rolled them back into place. Unless you own one I think renting a pallet jack is a must and should work well. I was able to easily roll things on the floor with the pallet jack. The toolbox probably weighs over 2000 pounds and I had no issues moving it. The XLC is $2.00 more a square foot than FreeFlow with the GJ discount so that's a big price difference. Of course you might get a better discount since that would be a huge order. Cutting the tiles is easy with a jigsaw or table saw. I think RaceDeck has much better locking mechanisms than SwissTraxx. I would recommend getting the larger edge pieces as shown in my build thread. They are much nicer and heavier duty than the regular ones. https://www.garagejournal.com/forum/threads/racedeck-freeflow-installed-after-11-year-debate.497913/

James

 

[Jstepy]

James thanks for the great info sir!

 

[frankd]

I never considered racedeck as it was out of my budget but I did get samples of truelock and garagedeck as well as one other (can't remember the name). I ended up going with the garage deck due to price. I'm very happy overall with the product. I installed it over 2 years ago.
While it says it can hold tens of thousands of pounds...and I'm sure it can, I'd be careful with the gun safe. Anything heavy that you drag across the tile will scratch it... which is why I chose a solid dark gray for my garage.
Not sure how to address that bump out